Synchronous playback with battery-powered playback device

ABSTRACT

Example techniques related to battery-powered playback devices. In an example, a first battery-powered playback device receives audio content from a network device and forwards the audio content to a second playback device for synchronous playback of the audio content with the second playback device, plays back the audio content, detects that a battery level of a battery of the first playback device has fallen below a predefined threshold, and ceases the forwarding of the audio content after the battery level of the battery of the first playback device has fallen below the predefined threshold. After the battery level of the first playback device has fallen below the predefined threshold, the second playback device receives the audio content from the network device, forwards the audio content to the first playback device for synchronous playback with the first playback device, and plays back the audio content in synchrony with the first playback device.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 120 to, and is acontinuation of, U.S. non-provisional patent application Ser. No.15/999,382, filed on Aug. 20, 2018, entitled “Synchronous Playback WithBattery-Powered Playback Device,” which is incorporated herein byreference in its entirety.

U.S. non-provisional patent application Ser. No. 15/999,382 claimspriority under 35 U.S.C. § 120 to, and is a continuation of, U.S.non-provisional patent application Ser. No. 14/940,490, filed on Nov.13, 2015, entitled “Playback Device Operations Based On Battery Level”and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 10,055,003 on Aug. 21, 2020, which isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

U.S. non-provisional patent application Ser. No. 14/940,490 claimspriority under 35 U.S.C. § 120 to, and is a continuation of, U.S.non-provisional patent application Ser. No. 14/042,072, filed on Sep.30, 2013, entitled “Transitioning A Networked Playback Device BetweenOperating Modes,” which is also incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The disclosure is related to consumer goods and, more particularly, tomethods, systems, products, features, services, and other items directedto media playback or some aspect thereof.

BACKGROUND

Digital music has become readily available due in part to thedevelopment of consumer level technology that has allowed people tolisten to digital music on a personal audio device. The consumer'sincreasing preference for digital audio has also resulted in theintegration of personal audio devices into PDAs, cellular phones, andother mobile devices. The portability of these mobile devices hasenabled people to take the music listening experience with them andoutside of the home. People have become able to consume digital music,like digital music files or even Internet radio, in the home through theuse of their computer or similar devices. Now there are many differentways to consume digital music, in addition to other digital contentincluding digital video and photos, stimulated in many ways byhigh-speed Internet access at home, mobile broadband Internet access,and the consumer's hunger for digital media.

Until recently, options for accessing and listening to digital audio inan out-loud setting were severely limited. In 2005, Sonos offered forsale its first digital audio system that enabled people to, among manyother things, access virtually unlimited sources of audio via one ormore networked connected zone players, dynamically group or ungroup zoneplayers upon command, wirelessly send the audio over a local networkamongst zone players, and play the digital audio out loud acrossmultiple zone players in synchrony. The Sonos system can be controlledby software applications running on network capable mobile devices andcomputers.

Along with consumers' increased preference for digital audio, manyconsumers have an increased preference for “going green.” One commonstep taken by people attempting to “go green” is to reduce the amount ofenergy they consume. For example, consumers who are going green may makea conscious effort to turn off a light whenever they leave a room.Additionally, people may only purchase electronics that are rated to be“energy efficient.” Other such examples of “going green” exist as well.

In view of this growing trending preference, some electronics developersare making efforts to “go green” as well. In the context of electronicdevices within a network (e.g., a networked audio system), going greenmay have many challenges. For instance, certain devices may performtasks that generally require the consumption of a relatively high amountof energy. Thus, if using conventional approaches, “going green” may beundesirable and possibly even impractical in certain networks and/orcertain environments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Features, aspects, and advantages of the presently disclosed technologymay be better understood with regard to the following description,appended claims, and accompanying drawings where:

FIG. 1 shows an example media system configuration in which certainembodiments may be practiced;

FIG. 2A shows an illustration of an example zone player having abuilt-in amplifier and transducers;

FIG. 2B shows an illustration of an example zone player having abuilt-in amplifier and connected to external speakers;

FIG. 2C shows an illustration of an example zone player connected to anA/V receiver and speakers;

FIG. 3 shows an illustration of an example controller;

FIG. 4 shows an internal functional block diagram of an example zoneplayer;

FIG. 5 shows an internal functional block diagram of an examplecontroller;

FIG. 6 shows an example ad-hoc playback network;

FIG. 7A shows an example system configuration at a first point in time;

FIG. 7B shows an example system configuration at a second point in time;and

FIGS. 8A, 8B, and 8C show simplified flowcharts for transitioning anetworked playback device between operating modes.

In addition, the drawings are for the purpose of illustrating exampleembodiments, but it is understood that the inventions are not limited tothe arrangements and instrumentality shown in the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION I. Overview

Embodiments are described herein that may allow a playback device totransition between operating modes to conserve power, among otherbenefits. In certain embodiments the playback device may be part of anetworked media playback system that includes one or more other playbackdevices and at least one controller.

In one embodiment, the playback device may obtain power from an internalbattery or an external power source, and based on the source of power,the playback device may operate in different modes. For example, whenthe playback device is receiving power from the internal battery, theplayback device may operate in a “battery mode.” When the playbackdevice is receiving power from the external power source, the playbackdevice may operate in a “powered mode.”

The operating mode may determine what functions the playback device mayperform. In one embodiment, when in either a battery mode or a poweredmode, the playback device may receive commands to play audio content,and in turn the playback device may output the audio. In addition toaudio playback, in some embodiments, the operating mode may determinethe networking function that is supported by the playback device. Insome embodiments, the powered mode may cause the playback device toserve as a network bridge and/or an access point for other networkdevices (including, but not limited to other devices in the networkedmedia playback system). In some embodiments, the battery mode may causethe playback device to serve as a client device, where when serving as aclient device the playback device does not serve as a network bridge.

In certain embodiments, the playback device may remain in its currentoperating mode until the playback device receives a command totransition to a different operating mode. In some instances, theplayback device may receive the command from a second playback device.In other instances, the playback device may receive the command from acontroller device.

As indicated above, the present application involves transitioning aplayback device between operating modes, while the playback device is amember of a networked media playback system. In one aspect, a method isprovided. The method involves determining, by a playback device, thatthe playback device is operating in one of a powered mode and a batterymode. The powered mode comprises the playback device receiving powerfrom an external source. The battery mode comprises the playback devicereceiving power from at least one battery. The method further involvescausing the playback device to serve as a network bridge when theplayback device is in the powered mode. The method further involvescausing the playback device to (a) serve as a client device and (b) notserve as a network bridge when the playback device is in the batterymode.

In another aspect, a playback device is provided. The playback deviceincludes at least one battery, a network interface, a non-transitorycomputer readable medium, and program instructions stored on thenon-transitory computer readable medium. The program instructions areexecutable by at least one processor to cause the playback device todetermine that the playback device is operating in one of a powered modeand a battery mode. The powered mode comprises the playback devicereceiving power from an external source. The battery mode comprises theplayback device receiving power from the at least one battery. Theprogram instructions are executable by the at least one processor tofurther cause the playback device to serve as a network bridge whenoperating in the powered mode. The program instructions are executableby the at least one processor to further cause the playback device to(a) serve as a client device and (b) not serve as a network bridge whenoperating in the battery mode.

In yet another aspect, a non-transitory computer readable medium isprovided. The non-transitory computer readable medium havinginstructions stored thereon that are executable by at least oneprocessor. The instructions include instructions for determining that aplayback device is operating in one of a powered mode and a batterymode. The powered mode comprises the playback device receiving powerfrom an external source. The battery mode comprises the playback devicereceiving power from at least one battery. The instructions furtherinclude instructions for causing the playback device to serve as anetwork bridge when the playback device is operating in the poweredmode. The instructions further include instructions for causing theplayback device to (a) serve as a client device and (b) not serve as anetwork bridge when the playback device is operating in the batterymode. Other embodiments, as those discussed in the following and othersas can be appreciated by one having ordinary skill in the art are alsopossible.

II. Example Operating Environment

Referring now to the drawings, in which like numerals can refer to likeparts throughout the figures, FIG. 1 shows an example media systemconfiguration 100 in which one or more embodiments disclosed herein canbe practiced or implemented.

By way of illustration, the media system configuration 100 is associatedwith a home having multiple zones, although it should be understood thatthe home could be configured with only one zone. Additionally, one ormore zones can be added to the configuration 100 over time. Each zonemay be assigned by a user to a different room or space, such as, forexample, an office, bathroom, bedroom, kitchen, dining room, familyroom, home theater room, utility or laundry room, and patio. A singlezone might also include multiple rooms or spaces if so configured. Withrespect to FIG. 1 , one or more of zone players 102-124 are shown ineach respective zone. The zone players 102-124, also referred to hereinas playback devices, multimedia units, speakers, players, and so on,provide audio, video, and/or audiovisual output. A controller 130 (e.g.,shown in the kitchen for purposes of this illustration) provides controlto the media system configuration 100. The controller 130 may be fixedto a zone, or alternatively, it may be mobile such that it can be movedabout the zones. The media system configuration 100 may also includemore than the one controller 130, and additional controllers may beadded to the system over time.

The media system configuration 100 illustrates an example whole housemedia system, though it is understood that the technology describedherein is not limited to, among other things, its particular place ofapplication or to an expansive system like the whole house media systemconfiguration 100 of FIG. 1 .

a. Example Zone Players

FIGS. 2A, 2B, and 2C show example types of zone players. Zone players200, 202, and 204 of FIGS. 2A, 2B, and 2C, respectively, can correspondto any of the zone players 102-124 of FIG. 1 , for example. In someembodiments, audio is reproduced using only a single zone player, suchas by a full-range player. In some embodiments, audio is reproducedusing two or more zone players, such as by using a combination offull-range players or a combination of full-range and specializedplayers. In some embodiments, each zone player 200-204 may also bereferred to as a “smart speaker,” because they may contain processingcapabilities beyond the reproduction of audio, more of which isdescribed below.

FIG. 2A illustrates the zone player 200 that includes sound producingequipment 208 capable of reproducing full-range sound. The sound maycome from an audio signal that is received and processed by the zoneplayer 200 over a wired or wireless data network. The sound producingequipment 208 may include one or more built-in amplifiers and one ormore acoustic transducers (e.g., speakers). A built-in amplifier isdescribed more below with respect to FIG. 4 . A speaker or acoustictransducer can include, for example, any of a tweeter, a mid-rangedriver, a low-range driver, and a subwoofer. In some embodiments, thezone player 200 can be statically or dynamically configured to playstereophonic audio, monaural audio, or both. In some embodiments, thezone player 200 may be dynamically configured to reproduce a subset offull-range sound, such as when the zone player 200 is grouped with otherzone players to play stereophonic audio, monaural audio, and/or surroundaudio or when the media content received by the zone player 200 is lessthan full-range.

FIG. 2B illustrates the zone player 202 that includes a built-inamplifier to power a set of detached speakers 210. A detached speakercan include, for example, any type of loudspeaker. The zone player 202may be configured to power one, two, or more separate loudspeakers. Thezone player 202 may be configured to communicate an audio signal (e.g.,right and left channel audio or more channels depending on itsconfiguration) to the set of detached speakers 210 via a wired path.

FIG. 2C illustrates the zone player 204 that does not include a built-inamplifier, but is configured to communicate an audio signal, receivedover a data network, to an audio (or “audio/video”) receiver 214 withbuilt-in amplification.

Referring back to FIG. 1 , in some embodiments, one, some, or all of thezone players 102-124 can retrieve audio directly from a source. Forexample, a particular zone player in a zone or zone group may beassigned to a playback queue (or “queue”). The playback queue maycontain information corresponding to zero or more audio items forplayback by the associated zone or zone group. The playback queue may bestored in memory on a zone player or some other designated device. Eachitem contained in the playback queue may comprise a uniform resourceidentifier (URI) or some other identifier that can be used by the zoneplayer(s) to seek out and/or retrieve the audio items from theidentified audio source(s). Depending on the item, the audio sourcemight be found on the Internet (e.g., the cloud), locally from anotherdevice over the data network 128 (described further below), from thecontroller 130, stored on the zone player itself, or from an audiosource communicating directly to the zone player. In some embodiments,the zone player can reproduce the audio itself (e.g., play the audio),send the audio to another zone player for reproduction, or both wherethe audio is reproduced by the zone player as well as one or moreadditional zone players (possibly in synchrony). In some embodiments,the zone player may play a first audio content (or alternatively, maynot play the content at all), while sending a second, different audiocontent to another zone player(s) for reproduction. To the user, eachitem in a playback queue is represented on an interface of a controllerby an element such as a track name, album name, radio station name,playlist, or other some other representation. A user can populate theplayback queue with audio items of interest. The user may also modifyand clear the playback queue, if so desired.

As described, a zone player (e.g., any of the zone players 102-124) mayperform various networking functions. For instance, a zone player mayserve as a “bridge” for other zone players and/or serve as an “accesspoint” for one or more controllers. At the same time, the zone playermay additionally perform audio reproduction functions.

As discussed further below, in one arrangement, a first zone player maybe one of several other zone players that together form a network (e.g.,an ad-hoc or “mesh” network). When the first zone player serves as abridge for a second zone player, the first zone player may receive data(e.g., audio data) from a network device (e.g., a third zone player, acontroller, a router, etc.) and the first zone player may then transmitthe received data to the second zone player. When the first zone playerserves as an access point for a controller, the first zone player mayconnect the controller to other devices in the network (e.g., other zoneplayers). In general, each zone player in the network may, at some time,serve as a bridge for another zone player in the network, and each zoneplayer may, at some time, also serve as an access point for one or morecontrollers. In certain embodiments, it may be preferable for onlycertain zone players within a network to serve as a bridge and/or anaccess point, while other zone players serve as client devices. A clientdevice is a network device that can be a source or a destination fornetworking data, but does not forward data to other network devices. Forexample, a client device may transmit and receive data to a deviceacting as, for example, an access point or bridge, output audio (forexample, through internal speakers, or through an audio interface toexternal speakers such as described in FIG. 2 ), and source audio (forexample, through an audio line-in or another input interface). Putsimply, a zone player serving as a client device may source or playaudio, while a zone player serving as a network bridge or access pointmay forward data to other network devices as well as source and playaudio.

By way of illustration, SONOS, Inc. of Santa Barbara, Calif. presentlyoffers for sale zone players referred to as a “PLAY:5,” “PLAY:3,”“PLAYBAR,” “CONNECT:AMP,” “CONNECT,” and “SUB.” Any other past, present,and/or future zone players can additionally or alternatively be used toimplement the zone players of example embodiments disclosed herein.Additionally, it is understood that a zone player is not limited to theparticular examples illustrated in FIGS. 2A, 2B, and 2C or to the SONOSproduct offerings. For example, a zone player may include a wired orwireless headphone. In yet another example, a zone player might includea sound bar for television. In yet another example, a zone player mayinclude or interact with a docking station for an Apple iPod™ or similardevice.

b. Example Controllers

FIG. 3 illustrates an example wireless controller 300 in a dockingstation 302. By way of illustration, the controller 300 may correspondto the controller 130 of FIG. 1 . The docking station 302, if providedor used, may provide power to the controller 300 and additionally maycharge a battery of the controller 300. In some embodiments, thecontroller 300 may be provided with a touch screen 304 that allows auser to interact through touch with the controller 300, for example, toretrieve and navigate a playlist of audio items, modify and/or clear theplayback queue of one or more zone players, control other operations ofone or more zone players, and provide overall control of the mediasystem configuration 100. In other embodiments, other input mechanismssuch as voice control may be used to interact with the controller 300.In certain embodiments, any number of controllers can be used to controlthe media system configuration 100. In some embodiments, there may be alimit set on the number of controllers that can control the media systemconfiguration 100. The controllers might be wireless like the wirelesscontroller 300 or wired to the data network 128.

In some embodiments, if more than one controller is used in the mediasystem configuration 100 of FIG. 1 , each controller may be coordinatedto display common content, and may all be dynamically updated toindicate changes made to the media system configuration 100 from asingle controller. Coordination can occur, for instance, by a controllerperiodically requesting a state variable directly or indirectly from oneor more of the zone players; the state variable may provide informationabout the media system configuration 100, such as current zone groupconfiguration, what is playing in one or more zones, volume levels, andother items of interest. The state variable may be passed around on thedata network 128 between zone players (and controllers, if so desired)as needed or as often as programmed.

In addition, an application running on any network-enabled portabledevice, such as an iPhone™, iPad™, Android™ powered phone or tablet, orany other smart phone or network-enabled device can be used as thecontroller 130. An application running on a laptop or desktop personalcomputer (PC) or Mac™ can also be used as the controller 130. Suchcontrollers may connect to the media system configuration 100 through aninterface with the data network 128, a zone player, a wireless router,or using some other configured connection path. Example controllersoffered by Sonos, Inc. of Santa Barbara, Calif. include a “Controller200,” “SONOS® CONTROL,” “SONOS® Controller for iPhone™,” “SONOS®Controller for iPad™,” “SONOS Controller for Android™,” “SONOSController for Mac™ or PC.”

c. Example Data Connection

The zone players 102-124 of FIG. 1 may be coupled directly or indirectlyto a data network, such as data network 128. The controller 130 may alsobe coupled directly or indirectly to the data network 128 or individualzone players. The data network 128 is represented by an octagon in thefigure to stand out from other representative components. While the datanetwork 128 is shown in a single location, it is understood that such anetwork is distributed in and around the media system configuration 100.Particularly, the data network 128 can be a wired network, a wirelessnetwork, or a combination of both wired and wireless networks. In someembodiments, one or more of the zone players 102-124 may be wirelesslycoupled to the data network 128 based on a proprietary mesh network. Insome embodiments, one or more of the zone players may be coupled to thedata network 128 using a centralized access point such as a wired orwireless router. In some embodiments, one or more of the zone players102-124 may be coupled via a wire to the data network 128 using Ethernetor similar technology. In addition to the one or more zone players102-124 connecting to the data network 128, the data network 128 canfurther allow access to a wide area network, such as the Internet.

In some embodiments, connecting any of the zone players 102-124, or someother connecting device, to a broadband router, may create the datanetwork 128. Other of the zone players 102-124 may then be added wiredor wirelessly to the data network 128. For example, a zone player (e.g.,any of the zone players 102-124) can be added to the media systemconfiguration 100 by simply pressing a button on the zone player itself(or perform some other action), which enables a connection to be made tothe data network 128. The broadband router can be connected to anInternet Service Provider (ISP), for example. The broadband router canbe used to form another data network within the media systemconfiguration 100, which can be used in other applications (e.g., websurfing). The data network 128 can also be used in other applications,if so programmed. An example second network may implement SONOSNET™protocol, developed by SONOS, Inc. of Santa Barbara. SONOSNET™represents a secure, AES-encrypted, peer-to-peer wireless mesh network.Alternatively, in certain embodiments, the data network 128 is the samenetwork, such as a traditional wired or wireless network, used for otherapplications in the household.

d. Example Zone Configurations

A particular zone can contain one or more zone players. For example, thefamily room of FIG. 1 contains the two zone players 106 and 108, whilethe kitchen is shown with the one zone player 102. In another example,the home theater room contains additional zone players to play audiofrom a 5.1 channel or greater audio source (e.g., a movie encoded with5.1 or greater audio channels). In some embodiments, one can position azone player in a room or space and assign the zone player to a new orexisting zone via the controller 130. As such, zones may be created,combined with another zone, removed, and given a specific name (e.g.,“Kitchen”), if so desired and programmed to do so with the controller130. Moreover, in some embodiments, zone configurations may bedynamically changed even after being configured using the controller 130or some other mechanism.

In some embodiments, a “bonded zone” contains two or more zone players,such as the two zone players 106 and 108 in the family room, whereby thetwo zone players 106 and 108 can be configured to play the same audiosource in synchrony. In one example, the two zone players 106 and 108can be paired to play two separate sounds in left and right channels,for example. In other words, the stereo effects of a sound can bereproduced or enhanced through the two zone players 106 and 108, one forthe left sound and the other for the right sound. In another example twoor more zone players can be sonically consolidated to form a single,consolidated zone player. A consolidated zone player (though made up ofmultiple, separate devices) can be configured to process and reproducesound differently than an unconsolidated zone player or zone playersthat are paired, because a consolidated zone player has additionalspeaker drivers from which sound can be passed. The consolidated zoneplayer can further be paired with a single zone player or yet anotherconsolidated zone player. Each playback device of a consolidatedplayback device can be set in a consolidated mode, for example.

In certain embodiments, paired zone players (also referred to as “bondedzone players”) can play audio in synchrony with other zone players inthe same or different zones.

According to some embodiments, one can continue to do any of: group,consolidate, and pair zone players, for example, until a desiredconfiguration is complete. The actions of grouping, consolidation, andpairing are preferably performed through a control interface, such asusing the controller 130, and not by physically connecting andre-connecting speaker wire, for example, to individual, discretespeakers to create different configurations. As such, certainembodiments described herein provide a more flexible and dynamicplatform through which sound reproduction can be offered to theend-user.

e. Example Audio Sources

In some embodiments, each zone can play from the same audio source asanother zone or each zone can play from a different audio source. Forexample, someone can be grilling on the patio and listening to jazzmusic via the zone player 124, while someone is preparing food in thekitchen and listening to classical music via the zone player 102.Further, someone can be in the office listening to the same jazz musicvia the zone player 110 that is playing on the patio via the zone player124. In some embodiments, the jazz music played via the zone players 110and 124 may be played in synchrony. Synchronizing playback amongst zonesallows for an individual to pass through zones while seamlessly (orsubstantially seamlessly) listening to the audio. Further, zones can beput into a “party mode” such that all associated zones will play audioin synchrony.

Sources of audio content that may be played by the zone players 102-124are numerous. In some embodiments, audio on a zone player itself may beaccessed and played. In some embodiments, audio on a controller may beaccessed via the data network 128 and played. In some embodiments, musicfrom a personal library stored on a computer or networked-attachedstorage (NAS) may be accessed via the data network 128 and played. Insome embodiments, Internet radio stations, shows, and podcasts may beaccessed via the data network 128 and played. Music or cloud servicesthat let a user stream and/or download music and audio content may beaccessed via the data network 128 and played. Further, music may beobtained from traditional sources, such as a turntable or CD player, viaa line-in connection to a zone player, for example. Audio content mayalso be accessed using a different protocol, such as Airplay™ which is awireless technology by Apple, Inc., for example. Audio content receivedfrom one or more sources can be shared amongst the zone players 102 to124 via the data network 128 and/or the controller 130. Theabove-disclosed sources of audio content are referred to herein asnetwork-based audio information sources. However, network-based audioinformation sources are not limited thereto.

In some embodiments, the example home theater zone players 116, 118, 120are coupled to an audio information source such as a television 132. Insome examples, the television 132 may be used as a source of audio forthe home theater zone players 116, 118, 120, while in other examplesaudio information from the television 132 may be shared with any of thezone players 102-124 in the media system configuration 100.

III. Example Zone Players

Referring now to FIG. 4 , there is shown an example block diagram of azone player 400 in accordance with an embodiment. The zone player 400may include a network interface 402, at least one processor 408, amemory 410, an audio processing component 412, one or more softwaremodules 414, an audio amplifier 416, a speaker unit 418 coupled to theaudio amplifier 416, at least one battery 430, and a power interface435. FIG. 2A shows an example illustration of such a zone player. Othertypes of zone players may not include the speaker unit 418 (e.g., suchas shown in FIG. 2B) or the audio amplifier 416 (e.g., such as shown inFIG. 2C). Further, it is contemplated that the zone player 400 can beintegrated into another component. For example, the zone player 400could be constructed as part of a television, lighting, or some otherdevice for indoor or outdoor use.

In some embodiments, the network interface 402 facilitates a data flowbetween the zone player 400 and other devices on the data network 128.In some embodiments, in addition to getting audio from another zoneplayer or device on the data network 128, the zone player 400 may accessaudio directly from the audio source, such as over a wide area networkor on the local network. In some embodiments, the network interface 402can further handle the address part of each packet so that it gets tothe right destination or intercepts packets destined for the zone player400. Accordingly, in certain embodiments, each of the packets includesan Internet Protocol (IP)-based source address as well as an IP-baseddestination address.

In some embodiments, the network interface 402 can include one or bothof a wireless interface 404 and a wired interface 406. The wirelessinterface 404, also referred to as a radio frequency (RF) interface,provides network interface functions for the zone player 400 towirelessly communicate with other devices (e.g., other zone player(s),speaker(s), receiver(s), component(s) associated with the data network128, and so on) in accordance with a communication protocol (e.g., anywireless standard including IEEE 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n,802.11ac, 802.15, 4G mobile communication standard, and so on). Thewireless interface 404 may include one or more radios. To receivewireless signals and to provide the wireless signals to the wirelessinterface 404 and to transmit wireless signals, the zone player 400includes one or more antennas 420. The wired interface 406 providesnetwork interface functions for the zone player 400 to communicate overa wire with other devices in accordance with a communication protocol(e.g., IEEE 802.3). In some embodiments, a zone player may includemultiple wireless 404 interfaces. In some embodiments, a zone player mayinclude multiple wired 406 interfaces. In some embodiments, a zoneplayer may include both of the interfaces 404 and 406. In someembodiments, a zone player may include only the wireless interface 404or the wired interface 406.

In some embodiments, the at least one processor 408 is a clock-drivenelectronic device that is configured to process input data according toinstructions stored in the memory 410. The memory 410 is data storagethat can be loaded with the one or more software modules 414, which canbe executed by the at least one processor 408 to achieve certain tasks.In the illustrated embodiment, the memory 410 is a tangiblemachine-readable medium storing instructions that can be executed by theat least one processor 408. In some embodiments, a task might be for thezone player 400 to retrieve audio data from another zone player or adevice on a network (e.g., using a uniform resource locator (URL) orsome other identifier). In some embodiments, a task may be for the zoneplayer 400 to send audio data to another zone player or device on anetwork. In some embodiments, a task may be for the zone player 400 tosynchronize playback of audio with one or more additional zone players.In some embodiments, a task may be to pair the zone player 400 with oneor more zone players to create a multi-channel audio environment.Additional or alternative tasks (e.g., those discussed below) can beachieved via the one or more software modules 414 and the at least oneprocessor 408.

The at least one battery 430 and/or the power interface 435 may providepower to the zone player 400. The at least one battery 430 may be arechargeable battery (e.g., a lithium-ion battery, a lithium-ion polymerbattery, a lead-acid battery, a nickel cadmium battery, or a nickelmetal hydride battery, among other examples) or a disposable battery.The power interface 435 may include an adapter configured to obtainpower from an electrical outlet, an external battery, or any otherexternal power source. The power interface 435 may provide power to thezone player 400 and/or may charge the at least one battery 430 when thepower interface 435 is receiving power from an external source.

In some embodiments, the at least one processor 408 may receive anindication that the power interface 435 is receiving power from anexternal power source, and the at least one processor 408 may then causethe zone player 400 to operate in a powered mode. While in the poweredmode, the zone player 400 may serve as a “bridge” and/or “access point”for other networked devices (e.g., as discussed above with respect tothe various networking functions of a zone player). As a bridge, thezone player 400 may receive data from one network device and transmitthe received data to another network device, among other functions.

In other embodiments, the at least one processor 408 may receive anindication that the power interface 435 is not receiving power from anexternal power source (e.g., the at least one processor 408 maydetermine that the at least one battery 430 is the only source ofpower), and the at least one processor 408 may then cause the zoneplayer 400 to operate in a battery mode. While in the battery mode, thezone player may serve as a client device, as opposed to serving as a“bridge” or as an “access point” for other devices (e.g., as discussedabove with respect to the various networking functions of a zoneplayer). In some embodiments, as a client device, the zone player 400may transmit and receive data to and from, respectively, other networkdevices as well as source or output audio, but may not forward data toother network devices. For example, while serving as a client device,the zone player 400 may transmit a request to a streaming contentprovider for a data stream and then receive the stream from the contentprovider, but the zone player 400 may not transmit the received datastream to another zone player. In another example, while serving as aclient device, the zone player 400 may act as an audio source andtransmit audio data to a first network device. Other examples are alsopossible.

In some embodiments, the at least one processor 408 may determine apower level of the at least one battery 430. The at least one processor408 may determine that the power level is below a predefined thresholdand accordingly, generate and cause the zone player to transmit apower-level message, for example, to a networked device. The power-levelmessage may indicate, for example, that the zone player has a lowbattery level, that (as a result) the zone player can no longer serve asan access point or a bridge, that the other networked device should finda new access point and/or bridge, etc. Other examples are certainlypossible. In one embodiment, the zone player may act as a bridge or aclient device based on the determined power level.

The audio processing component 412 can include one or moredigital-to-analog converters (DAC), an audio preprocessing component, anaudio enhancement component or a digital signal processor, and so on. Insome embodiments, the audio processing component 412 may be part of theat least one processor 408. In some embodiments, the audio that isretrieved via the network interface 402 may be processed and/orintentionally altered by the audio processing component 412. Further,the audio processing component 412 can produce analog audio signals. Theprocessed analog audio signals may then be provided to the audioamplifier 416 for playback through the speaker unit 418. In addition,the audio processing component 412 can include circuitry to processanalog or digital signals as inputs to play from the zone player 400,send to another zone player on a network, or both play and send toanother zone player on the network. An example input includes a line-inconnection (e.g., an auto-detecting 3.5 mm audio line-in connection).

The audio amplifier 416 is a device(s) that amplifies audio signals to alevel for driving one or more speakers of the speaker unit 418. The oneor more speakers 418 can include an individual transducer (e.g., a“driver”) or a complete speaker system that includes an enclosureincluding one or more drivers. A particular driver can be a subwoofer(e.g., for low frequencies), a mid-range driver (e.g., for middlefrequencies), and a tweeter (e.g., for high frequencies), for example.An enclosure can be sealed or ported, for example. Each transducer maybe driven by its own individual amplifier.

A commercial example, presently known as the PLAY:5™, is a zone playerwith a built-in amplifier and speakers that is capable of retrievingaudio directly from the source, such as on the Internet or on the localnetwork, for example. In particular, the PLAY:5™ is a five-amp,five-driver speaker system that includes two tweeters, two mid-rangedrivers, and one woofer. When playing audio content via the PLAY:5, theleft audio data of a track is sent out of the left tweeter and leftmid-range driver, the right audio data of a track is sent out of theright tweeter and the right mid-range driver, and mono bass is sent outof the subwoofer. Further, both mid-range drivers and both tweeters havethe same equalization (or substantially the same equalization). That is,they are both sent the same frequencies but from different channels ofaudio. Audio from Internet radio stations, online music and videoservices, downloaded music, analog audio inputs, television, DVD, and soon, can be played from the PLAY:5™.

IV. Example Controller

Referring now to FIG. 5 , there is shown an example block diagram for acontroller 500, which can correspond to the controller 130 in FIG. 1 .The controller 500 can be used to facilitate the control of multi-mediaapplications, automation and others in a system. In particular, thecontroller 500 may be configured to facilitate a selection of aplurality of audio sources available on the data network 128 and enablecontrol of one or more zone players (e.g., the zone players 102-124 inFIG. 1 ) through a wireless or wired network interface 508. According toone embodiment, the wireless communications may be based on an industrystandard (e.g., infrared, radio, wireless standards including IEEE802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.15, 4G mobilecommunication standard, and so on). Further, when a particular audio isbeing accessed via the controller 500 or being played via a zone player,a picture (e.g., album art) or any other data, associated with the audioand/or audio source can be transmitted from a zone player or otherelectronic device to the controller 500 for display.

The controller 500 may be provided with a screen 502 and an inputinterface 514 that may allow a user to interact with the controller 500,for example, to navigate a playlist of many multimedia items and tocontrol operations of one or more zone players. The screen 502 on thecontroller 500 can be an LCD screen, for example. The screen 500communicates with and is commanded by a screen driver 504 that iscontrolled by a microcontroller (e.g., a processor) 506. The controllermemory 510 can be loaded with one or more application modules 512 thatcan be executed by the microcontroller 506 with or without a user inputvia the user interface 514 to achieve certain tasks. In someembodiments, the application module 512 may be configured to facilitategrouping a number of selected zone players into a zone group tofacilitate synchronized playback amongst the zone players in the zonegroup. In some embodiments, the application module 512 may be configuredto control the audio sounds (e.g., volume) of the zone players in a zonegroup. In operation, when the microcontroller 506 executes one or moreof the application modules 512, the screen driver 504 may generatecontrol signals to drive the screen 502 to display an applicationspecific user interface accordingly.

The controller 500 includes a network interface 508 that may facilitatewired or wireless communication with a zone player. In some embodiments,the commands such as volume control and audio playback synchronizationmay be sent via the network interface 508. In some embodiments, a savedzone group configuration may be transmitted between a zone player and acontroller via the network interface 508. The controller 500 can controlone or more zone players, such as the zone players 102-124 of FIG. 1 .There can be more than one controller for a particular system, and eachcontroller may share common information with another controller, orretrieve the common information from a zone player, if such a zoneplayer stores configuration data (e.g., such as a state variable).Further, a controller can be integrated into a zone player.

It should be noted that other network-enabled devices such as aniPhone™, iPad™ or any other smartphone or network-enabled device (e.g.,a networked computer such as a PC or Mac™) can also be used as acontroller to interact or control zone players in a particularenvironment. In some embodiments, a software application or upgrade canbe downloaded onto a network-enabled device to perform the functionsdescribed herein.

In certain embodiments, a user can create a zone group (also referred toas a bonded zone) including at least two zone players from thecontroller 500. The zone players in the zone group can play audio in asynchronized fashion, such that all of the zone players in the zonegroup playback an identical audio source or a list of identical audiosources in a synchronized manner such that no (or substantially no)audible delays or hiccups are to be heard. Similarly, in someembodiments, when a user increases the audio volume of the group fromthe controller 500, the signals or data of increasing the audio volumefor the group are sent to one of the zone players and causes other zoneplayers in the group to be increased together in volume.

A user via the controller 500 can group zone players into a zone groupby activating a “Link Zones” or “Add Zone” soft button, or de-grouping azone group by activating an “Unlink Zones” or “Drop Zone” button. Forexample, one mechanism for ‘joining’ zone players together for audioplayback is to link a number of zone players together to form a group.To link a number of zone players together, a user can manually link eachzone player or room one after the other. For example, assume that thereis a multi-zone system that includes the following zones: Bathroom,Bedroom, Den, Dining Room, Family Room, and Foyer. In certainembodiments, a user can link any number of the six zone players, forexample, by starting with a single zone and then manually linking eachzone to that zone.

In certain embodiments, a set of zones can be dynamically linkedtogether using a command to create a zone scene or theme (subsequent tofirst creating the zone scene). For instance, a “Morning” zone scenecommand can link the Bedroom, Office, and Kitchen zones together in oneaction. Without this single command, the user would manually andindividually link each zone. The single command may include a mouseclick, a double mouse click, a button press, a gesture, or some otherprogrammed or learned action. Other kinds of zone scenes can beprogrammed or learned by the system over time.

In certain embodiments, a zone scene can be triggered based on time(e.g., an alarm clock function). For instance, a zone scene can be setto apply at 8:00 am. The system can link appropriate zonesautomatically, set specific music to play, and then stop the music aftera defined duration and revert the zones to their prior configuration.Although any particular zone can be triggered to an “On” or “Off” statebased on time, for example, a zone scene enables any zone(s) linked tothe scene to play a predefined audio (e.g., a favorable song, apredefined playlist) at a specific time and/or for a specific duration.If, for any reason, the scheduled music failed to be played (e.g., anempty playlist, no connection to a share, failed Universal Plug and Play(UPnP), no Internet connection for an Internet Radio station, and soon), a backup buzzer can be programmed to sound. The buzzer can includea sound file that is stored in a zone player, for example.

V. Example Ad-Hoc Network

Particular examples are now provided in connection with FIG. 6 todescribe, for purposes of illustration, certain embodiments to provideand facilitate connection to a playback network. FIG. 6 shows that thereare three zone players 602, 604 and 606 and a controller 608 that form anetwork branch that is also referred to as an Ad-Hoc network 610. TheAd-Hoc network 610 may be wireless, wired, or a combination of wired andwireless technologies. In general, an Ad-Hoc (or “spontaneous”) networkis a local area network or other small network in which there isgenerally no one access point for all traffic. With an establishedAd-Hoc network 610, the devices 602, 604, 606 and 608 can allcommunicate with each other in a “peer-to-peer” style of communication,for example. Furthermore, devices may join and/or leave from the Ad-Hocnetwork 610, and the Ad-Hoc network 610 will automatically reconfigureitself without needing the user to reconfigure the Ad-Hoc network 610.While an Ad-Hoc network is referenced in FIG. 6 , it is understood thata playback network may be based on a type of network that is completelyor partially different from an Ad-Hoc network (e.g., a mesh network).

Using the Ad-Hoc network 610, the devices 602, 604, 606, and 608 canshare or exchange one or more audio sources and be dynamically grouped(or ungrouped) to play the same or different audio sources. For example,the zone players 602 and 604 may be grouped to playback one piece ofmusic, and at the same time, the zone player 606 may playback anotherpiece of music. In other words, the devices 602, 604, 606 and 608, asshown in FIG. 6 , form a HOUSEHOLD that distributes audio and/orreproduces sound. As used herein, the term HOUSEHOLD (provided inuppercase letters to disambiguate from the user's domicile) is used torepresent a collection of networked devices that are cooperating toprovide an application or service.

In certain embodiments, a household identifier (HHID) is a short stringor an identifier that is computer-generated to help ensure that it isunique. Accordingly, the Ad-Hoc network 610 can be characterized by aunique HHID and a unique set of configuration variables or parameters,such as channels (e.g., respective frequency bands), service setidentifier (SSID) (a sequence of alphanumeric characters as a name of awireless network), and WEP keys (wired equivalent privacy) or othersecurity keys. In certain embodiments, SSID is set to be the same asHHID.

In certain embodiments, each HOUSEHOLD may include two types of networknodes: a control point (CP) and a zone player (ZP). The CP controls anoverall network setup process and sequencing, including an automaticgeneration of required network parameters (e.g., security keys). In anembodiment, the CP also provides the user with a HOUSEHOLD configurationuser interface. The CP function can be provided by a computer running aCP application module, or by a handheld controller (e.g., the controller308) also running a CP application module, for example. The ZP is anyother device on the network that is placed to participate in theautomatic configuration process. In certain embodiments, the ZP, as anotation used herein, may include the controller 308 or a computingdevice, for example. In some embodiments, the functionality, or certainparts of the functionality, in both the CP and the ZP may be combined ata single node (e.g., a ZP contains a CP or vice-versa).

In certain embodiments, HOUSEHOLD configuration may involve multiple CPsand ZPs that rendezvous and establish a known configuration such thatthey can use a standard networking protocol (e.g., IP over Wired orWireless Ethernet) for communication. In an embodiment, two types ofnetworks/protocols may be employed: Ethernet 802.3 and Wireless 802.11g.Interconnections between a CP and a ZP can use either of thenetworks/protocols. A device in the system as a member of a HOUSEHOLDcan connect to both networks simultaneously.

In an environment that has both networks in use, it is assumed that atleast one device in a system is connected to both as a bridging device,thus providing bridging services between wired/wireless networks forothers. The zone player 602 in FIG. 6 is shown to be connected to bothnetworks, for example. The connectivity to the network 612 may be basedon Ethernet and/or Wireless, while the connectivity to other devices602, 604 and 608 may be based on Wireless and Ethernet if so desired.

It is understood, however, that in some embodiments each zone player602-606 may access the Internet when retrieving media from the cloud(e.g., the Internet) via the bridging device. For example, the zoneplayer 602 may contain a uniform resource locator (URL) that specifiesan address to a particular audio track in the cloud. Using the URL, thezone player 602 may retrieve the audio track from the cloud, andultimately play the audio out of one or more of the other zone players.

VI. Transitioning Operating Modes

As discussed above, a zone player may operate in various modes, and incertain embodiments, it may be advantageous to control the operatingmode of a zone player (e.g., to conserve power). Consequently, incertain embodiments, a zone player's network transmissions may belimited based on the power source of the zone player and/or requestsfrom other network devices.

FIGS. 8A-8C are flowcharts that depict example methods for transitioninga networked playback device between operating modes. The example methodsare described by way of example as being carried out by a playbackdevice. For clarity, the methods are described herein with reference toFIGS. 7A and 7B, and are described as carried out by a zone player. Itshould be understood, however, that this is for purposes of example andexplanation only and that the methods described herein may be carriedout by various other playback devices.

In connection with the following descriptions of the example methods,FIGS. 7A and 7B depict an example system configuration at two differentpoints in time. FIG. 7A depicts the system configuration at a firstpoint in time 700. FIG. 7B depicts the system configuration at a secondpoint in time 750. It should be understood that the second point in time750 occurs sometime after the first point in time 700.

Furthermore, those skilled in the art will understand that the flowchartdescribed herein depicts functionality and operation of certainimplementations of example embodiments. In this regard, each block ofthe flowchart may represent a module, a segment, or a portion of programcode, which includes one or more instructions executable by a processorfor implementing specific logical functions or steps in the process. Theprogram code may be stored on any type of computer readable medium,e.g., such as a storage device including a disk or hard drive. Inaddition, each block may represent circuitry that is wired to performthe specific logical functions in the process. Alternativeimplementations are included within the scope of the example embodimentsof the present application in which functions may be executed out oforder from that shown or discussed, including substantially concurrentor in reverse order, depending on the functionality involved, as wouldbe understood by those skilled in the art.

FIG. 8A is a flowchart depicting an example method 800 for transitioninga networked playback device between operating modes. As shown in block810, the method 800 may involve the playback device (e.g., any zoneplayer described herein) determining that the playback device isoperating in one of a powered mode and a battery mode. A determinationthat the playback device is operating in the powered mode may includedetermining that the playback device is receiving power from an externalsource (e.g., the power interface 435 may be connected to an electricaloutlet). A determination that the playback device is operating in thebattery mode may include determining that the playback device isreceiving power from at least one battery (e.g., the power interface 435may not be connected to an external power source, and the zone player400 is powered by the at least one battery 430).

The playback device may make a determination as to which operating modeto operate in via at least one processor (e.g., the at least oneprocessor 408). The at least one processor 408 may receive a powersignal that indicates that the zone player is receiving power from anexternal source. Further, the at least one processor 408 may receive abattery signal (or the absence of the power signal) that indicates thatthe zone player is not receiving power from an external source. Thedetermination may be based on any such power signal or battery signal.In some embodiments, this determination may occur, for example, byperiodically checking the power signal or battery signal, when aninterrupt is received at the processor indicating a change from one mode(e.g. power mode) to another mode (e.g., battery mode).

For example, referring now to FIG. 7A, the system configuration at thefirst point in time 700 may include certain zone players operating inthe powered mode, while other zone players are operating in the batterymode. As shown, the system configuration 700 includes the zone players702-706 and external power sources 712-714. In some embodiments, theexternal power sources 712-714 may be docking stations connected to anelectrical outlet. The external power sources 712-714 may connect withthe zone players 702-704 (e.g., via the power interface 435) and mayprovide power to the zone players 702-704 and/or may charge internalbatteries (e.g., the at least one battery 430) of the zone players702-704. The zone players 702-706 may form a network (e.g., an ad-hoc or“mesh” network). In other embodiments, the zone players 702-706 may bepart of a local area network (which may be an ad-hoc, a “mesh” network,a star network, or another type of network).

As depicted, the zone player 702 is connected to the external powersource 712. At least one processor of the zone player 702 may determinethat the zone player 702 is receiving power from an external source, andthus, the zone player 702 is in the powered mode. Likewise, the zoneplayer 704 is connected to the external power source 714, and the zoneplayer 704 may determine that the zone player 704 is operating in thepowered mode. Further, as depicted, the zone player 706 is not connectedto an external power source. At least one processor of the zone player706 may determine that the zone player 706 is receiving power from aninternal battery, and therefore, the zone player 706 is operating in thebattery mode (as indicated by the battery symbol in FIG. 7A).

Referring back to FIG. 8A, at block 820, the method 800 may involvecausing the playback device to serve as a network bridge when theplayback device is in the powered mode. In some embodiments, at leastone processor may cause the zone player to serve as a network bridge.For example, the at least one processor 408 may receive a power signalthat indicates that the zone player is receiving power from an externalsource, and the at least one processor 408 may then cause the zoneplayer to serve as a network bridge. While serving as a network bridge,the zone player may receive data from a first network device andtransmit the received data to a second network device.

Referring back to FIG. 7A, while operating in the powered mode, the zoneplayer 702 may be configured to serve as a network bridge if so requiredby other devices within the network. For example, the zone player 706may be out of range of the zone player 704, but the zone player 706 maybe within the range of the zone player 702. Consequently, when the zoneplayer 706 requires data from a part of the network that the zone player706 is outside the range of, the zone player 702 may be caused to serveas a network bridge for the zone player 706. The zone player 702 maythen receive data from the zone player 704 and transmit the data to thezone player 706. Other examples are also possible.

In other embodiments, while operating in the powered mode, the playbackdevice (e.g. the zone player 702) may be further caused to serve as anaccess point for at least one controller device (e.g., the controller300). As the access point for the at least one controller device, theplayback device may provide the at least one controller device a meansfor communicating with other playback devices that are networked withthe playback device (e.g., any zone players that the zone player 702 isacting as a bridge for). For example, the zone player 702 may serve asan access point for a controller (not pictured), and consequently, thecontroller may communicate with the zone players 704 and 706.

In some embodiments, while serving as a network bridge and/or as anaccess point, the zone player may receive at least one command to outputmedia and in response to receiving the at least one command, theplayback device may output the media. For example, the zone player 702may receive a command from another device (e.g., the zone player 704,the zone player 706, or a controller) to play a music stream. The zoneplayer 702 may, in response to the command, locate the music stream andoutput the music stream at the zone player 702.

At block 830, the method 800 may involve causing the playback device to(a) serve as a client device and (b) not serve as a network bridge whenthe playback device is in the battery mode. In some embodiments, atleast one processor may cause a zone player to serve as a client deviceand not allow the zone player to act as a network bridge. For example,the at least one processor 408 may receive a battery signal thatindicates that the zone player 400 is receiving power from the at leastone battery 435 and not an external power source, and the at least oneprocessor 408 may then cause the zone player 400 to serve as a clientdevice. In other embodiments, the at least one processor 408 may causethe zone player 400 to serve as a client device in response to notreceiving a power signal.

While serving as a client device, a zone player (e.g., the zone player706) may have limited transmission permissions relative to a zone playerserving as a network bridge. For example, as a client device, the zoneplayer 706 may receive data from other network devices (e.g., the zoneplayer 702) but may not transmit the received data to another networkdevice. A client device (e.g., the zone player 706) may receive commandsto play audio and then output the desired audio. Additionally, theclient device may act as a source for audio (e.g., line-in interface onthe zone player 706, if applicable) to be played elsewhere in thenetworked media playback system.

Referring back to FIG. 7A, the zone player 706 is operating in thebattery mode. At least one processor of the zone player 706 may causethe zone player 706 to serve as a client device. While serving as aclient device, the zone player 706 may have limited transmissionpermissions (as depicted by the dashed arrow in FIG. 7A). For example,as a client device, the zone player 706 may not serve as a bridge oraccess point for another network device (e.g., another zone player orcontroller). The zone player 706 may receive data (e.g., an audiostream) from the zone player 702 but the zone player 706 may not forwarddata it receives from the zone player 702 to another device (e.g.,another zone player or a controller). Other examples are certainlypossible.

FIG. 8B is a flowchart depicting an example method 850 for transitioninga networked playback device between operating modes. In someembodiments, the method 850 may be carried out after or in combinationwith the method 800.

At block 852, the method 850 may involve, while the playback device isoperating in the battery mode, the playback device receiving a messagefrom at least one additional playback device. In one embodiment, themessage may indicate a request to join a network that the playbackdevice is part of. In other embodiments, the message may indicate arequest that the playback device serve as a network bridge. Otherexample messages are also possible.

For example, referring now to FIG. 7B, the system configuration at thesecond point in time 750 may include the zone players 702-706 operatingin the same modes as they were at the end of the first point in time(e.g., as depicted in FIG. 7A). For example, the zone players 702-704may operate in the powered mode (e.g., serving as bridges), and the zoneplayer 706 may operate in the battery mode (e.g., serving as a clientdevice).

The zone player 706 may receive a message from a zone player 708. Themessage may be a probe message indicating an attempt by the zone player708 to join (or possibly rejoin the network if the zone player 708 lostconnectivity) the network formed by the zone players 702-706. (It ispresumed that the zone player 708 previously obtained credentials tocommunicate with the zone players 702-706). The zone player 706 mayreceive the message from the zone player 708 because the zone player 708is out of the coverage range of the other zone players 702-704 that areacting as network bridges (e.g., the zone player 708 is only within therange of the zone player 706).

In some embodiments, after the zone player 706 receives the message, thezone player 706 may send a return message indicating that the zoneplayer 706 can provide connectivity (e.g., the zone player 706 maytransmit an acceptance response to the zone player 708). In otherembodiments, the zone player 706 may send a return message indicatingthat it is operating in battery mode, and the zone player 706 may waitfor another message from the zone player 708 before acting further.

In some embodiments, a zone player may receive multiple responses frommore than one zone player after transmitting a probe message. In such ascenario, the zone player may be configured to make a selection as towhich responding zone player should act as a network bridge for the zoneplayer. For example, the zone player 708 may receive responses from boththe zone player 702 and the zone player 706. The zone player 708 may beconfigured to determine from the responses that the zone player 702 isoperating in the powered mode and that the zone player 706 is operatingin the battery mode. From this determination, the zone player 708 mayselect the zone player 702 to act as a network bridge, since the zoneplayer 702 is powered by an external power source and the zone player706 is powered by an internal battery. Such a determination could, forexample, conserve power. Other examples are also possible.

At block 854, the method 850 may involve, in response to the playbackdevice receiving the message, causing the playback device to serve as anetwork bridge. In some embodiments, at least one processor of the zoneplayer may cause the zone player to serve as a network bridge afterreceiving the message from another zone player even when the zone playeris operating in the battery mode.

For example, referring back to FIG. 7B, after the zone player 706received the message from the zone player 708 requesting to join thenetwork, at least one processor of the zone player 706 may transitionthe zone player 706 from serving as a client device to serving as anetwork bridge. That is, although the zone player 706 is not poweredfrom an external source, in response to the zone player 706 receivingthe message from the zone player 708, the zone player 706 serves as anetwork bridge. Consequently, the power consumption of the zone player706 may increase, but the zone player 708 may join the network, and thezone player 708 may receive data (e.g., audio data) from the zone player706. At the end of the second point in time, the zone players 702-706may serve as network bridges, while the zone player 708 may serve as aclient device.

In some embodiments, a zone player may be operating in the battery mode,and the zone player may receive a request for the zone player to serveas a bridge. The zone player may be configured to transition to serve asa bridge based on a power level of the zone player's battery. Forexample, in one embodiment, the zone player may receive the request toserve as a bridge, determine that the power level of the zone player'sbattery is below a predefined threshold, and send a return responseindicating that the zone player cannot serve as a bridge. In otherembodiments, the zone player may receive the request to serve as abridge, determine that the power level of the zone player's battery isat or above a predefined threshold, and cause the zone player to serveas a network bridge. Other examples are also possible.

FIG. 8C is a flowchart depicting an example method 855 for transitioninga networked playback device between operating modes. In someembodiments, the method 855 may be carried out after or in combinationwith the method 800 and/or the method 850.

At block 856, the method 855 may involve, while the playback device isserving as a network bridge, the playback device receiving a messagefrom at least one additional playback device. For example, referringback to FIG. 7B, the zone player 706 may be serving as a network bridgefor the zone player 708 (e.g., as a result of method 850 as describedabove), and the zone player 706 may receive a message from the zoneplayer 708. In some embodiments, the message may indicate that the zoneplayer 708 is leaving the network, that the zone player 708 is currentlyoperating in the powered mode, or that the zone player 708 is switchingto a different bridge, among other example messages.

At block 858, the method 855 may involve, in response to the playbackdevice receiving the message, causing the playback device to operate asa client device. For example, referring back to FIG. 7B, the zone player706 may receive the message from the zone player 708. The message mayindicate that the zone player 708 no longer requires the zone player 706to act as a bridge. In response, at least one processor of the zoneplayer 706 may cause the zone player 706 to transition from serving as anetwork bridge to serving as a client device. By transitioning the zoneplayer 706 from serving as a network bridge to serving as a clientdevice, the zone player 706 may conserve power, which may be desirablewithin a network.

In some embodiments, the methods 800, 850, and/or 855 may furtherinvolve the playback device detecting a power level of the at least onebattery (e.g., the at least one battery 430). For example, the at leastone processor 408 may detect the power level of the at least one battery430 of the zone player 400.

In some embodiments, once the power level is detected, the methods 800,850, and 855 may further involve transmitting, by the playback device toat least one other networked device (e.g., one or more controllersand/or one or more zone players), a power-level message when the powerlevel is below a predefined threshold. For example, referring back toFIG. 7B, at least one processor of the zone player 706 may detect apower level of at least one battery of the zone player 706 and determinethat the power level is below a predefined threshold. The at least oneprocessor may cause the zone player 706 to transmit a power-levelmessage to at least one other networked device (e.g., the zone player708) indicating that the zone player 706 has low battery power and theat least one other networked device may lose connectivity. In someembodiments, threshold data may be stored in memory 410, which mayindicate the predefined threshold.

In certain embodiments, the power-level message sent by the zone playerto the at least one other networked device may indicate a number ofscenarios. For example, the zone player 706 may transmit the power-levelmessage that may indicate to other network devices (e.g., the zoneplayer 702, the zone player 708, a controller, etc.) that the zoneplayer 706 has a low battery level, that the zone player 706 can nolonger serve as an access point and/or a bridge, that the other networkdevices should find a new access point and/or bridge, etc. Otherexamples are certainly possible.

In some embodiments, the at least one other networked device thatreceives the power-level message may be configured to perform a functionin response to the power-level message. For example, a zone player thatreceives the power-level message may find a different zone player toserve as a bridge, or a controller that receives the power-level messagemay find a different zone player to serve as an access point.

For example, referring back to FIG. 7B, the zone player 706 may bepowered by an internal battery, and the zone player 706 may be servingas a bridge for the zone player 708. The zone player 706 may transmit apower-level message to a controller (e.g., a controller that the zoneplayer 706 is acting as an access point for), and the power-levelmessage may indicate that the zone player's battery level is low andthat the zone player 708 may become unreachable on the network. Inanother example, the zone player 706 may transmit a power-level messageto a second zone player (e.g., any of the zone players 702, 704, or708), and the power-level message may indicate that the zone player 706has a low battery level. Other examples are possible as well.

In some embodiments, a controller may display on a display screen anotification indicating that the battery level of a zone player (such asthe zone player 706) is low. In other embodiments, the controller maydisplay on a display screen a notification indicating that a zone playeris about to lose connectivity, possibly because another zone player thatis acting as a bridge for the zone player is about to stop acting as abridge. For example, if the battery power of the zone player 706 is ator below a predefined threshold, and the zone player 708 will becomeunreachable on the network without using the zone player 706 as abridge, then the controller may provide an indication of this event tothe user.

IX. Conclusion

The descriptions above disclose various example systems, methods,apparatus, and articles of manufacture including, among othercomponents, firmware and/or software executed on hardware. However, suchexamples are merely illustrative and should not be considered aslimiting. For example, it is contemplated that any or all of thesefirmware, hardware, and/or software components can be embodiedexclusively in hardware, exclusively in software, exclusively infirmware, or in any combination of hardware, software, and/or firmware.Accordingly, while the following describes example systems, methods,apparatus, and/or articles of manufacture, the examples provided are notthe only way(s) to implement such systems, methods, apparatus, and/orarticles of manufacture.

As provided in the embodiments discussed above, the present applicationmay allow a playback device to transition between operating modes tohelp conserve power, among other benefits. In one aspect, a method isprovided. The method involves determining, by a playback device, thatthe playback device is operating in one of a powered mode and a batterymode. The powered mode comprises the playback device receiving powerfrom an external source. The battery mode comprises the playback devicereceiving power from at least one battery. The method further involvescausing the playback device to serve as a network bridge when theplayback device is in the powered mode. The method further involvescausing the playback device to (a) serve as a client device and (b) notserve as a network bridge when the playback device is in the batterymode.

In another aspect, a playback device is provided. The playback deviceincludes at least one battery, a network interface, a non-transitorycomputer readable medium, and program instructions stored on thenon-transitory computer readable medium. The program instructions areexecutable by at least one processor to cause the playback device todetermine that the playback device is operating in one of a powered modeand a battery mode. The powered mode comprises the playback devicereceiving power from an external source. The battery mode comprises theplayback device receiving power from the at least one battery. Theprogram instructions are executable by the at least one processor tofurther cause the playback device to serve as a network bridge whenoperating in the powered mode. The program instructions are executableby the at least one processor to further cause the playback device to(a) serve as a client device and (b) not serve as a network bridge whenoperating in the battery mode.

In yet another aspect, a non-transitory computer readable medium isprovided. The non-transitory computer readable medium havinginstructions stored thereon that are executable by at least oneprocessor. The instructions include instructions for determining that aplayback device is operating in one of a powered mode and a batterymode. The powered mode comprises the playback device receiving powerfrom an external source. The battery mode comprises the playback devicereceiving power from at least one battery. The instructions furtherinclude instructions for causing the playback device to serve as anetwork bridge when the playback device is operating in the poweredmode. The instructions further include instructions for causing theplayback device to (a) serve as a client device and (b) not serve as anetwork bridge when the playback device is operating in the batterymode.

Additionally, references herein to “embodiment” means that a particularfeature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with theembodiment can be included in at least one example embodiment of theinvention. The appearances of this phrase in various places in thespecification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment,nor are separate or alternative embodiments mutually exclusive of otherembodiments. As such, the embodiments described herein, explicitly andimplicitly understood by one skilled in the art, can be combined withother embodiments.

The specification is presented largely in terms of illustrativeenvironments, systems, procedures, steps, logic blocks, processing, andother symbolic representations that directly or indirectly resemble theoperations of data processing devices coupled to networks. These processdescriptions and representations are typically used by those skilled inthe art to most effectively convey the substance of their work to othersskilled in the art. Numerous specific details are set forth to provide athorough understanding of the present disclosure. However, it isunderstood to those skilled in the art that certain embodiments of thepresent disclosure can be practiced without certain, specific details.In other instances, well known methods, procedures, components, andcircuitry have not been described in detail to avoid unnecessarilyobscuring aspects of the embodiments. Accordingly, the scope of thepresent disclosure is defined by the appended claims rather than theforgoing description of embodiments.

When any of the appended claims are read to cover a purely softwareand/or firmware implementation, at least one of the elements in at leastone example is hereby expressly defined to include a tangible mediumsuch as a memory, DVD, CD, Blu-ray, and so on, storing the softwareand/or firmware.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A first playback device comprising: abattery; at least one communication interface configured to facilitatecommunication over at least one data network; at least one audioamplifier; at least one processor; at least one non-transitorycomputer-readable medium; and program instructions stored on the atleast one non-transitory computer-readable medium that are executable bythe at least one processor such that the first playback device isconfigured to: while the first playback device receives a data streamand a battery level of the battery is above a threshold, forward atleast some data from the data stream to a second playback device usingthe at least one communication interface; while the at least some datafrom the data stream is being forwarded to the second playback device,detect that the battery level of the battery is below the threshold; andafter detecting that the battery level of the battery is below thethreshold, (i) transmit at least one message comprising an indicationthat the first playback device will stop forwarding of the at least somedata from the data stream and (ii) stop forwarding of the at least somedata from the data stream to the second playback device.
 2. The firstplayback device of claim 1, wherein the data stream comprises an audiostream.
 3. The first playback device of claim 2, wherein the programinstructions that are executable by the at least one processor such thatthe first playback device is configured to forward the at least somedata from the data stream to the second playback device comprisesprogram instructions that are executable by the at least one processorsuch that the first playback device is configured to: forward audiocontent from the audio stream to the second playback device.
 4. Thefirst playback device of claim 3, further comprising programinstructions stored on the at least one non-transitory computer-readablemedium that are executable by the at least one processor such that thefirst playback device is configured to: using the at least one audioamplifier, play back the audio content from the audio stream insynchrony with the second playback device.
 5. The first playback deviceof claim 3, wherein the program instructions that are executable by theat least one processor such that the first playback device is configuredto forward the audio content from the audio stream to the secondplayback device comprises program instructions that are executable bythe at least one processor such that the first playback device isconfigured to: forward the audio content from the audio stream to aplurality of other playback devices comprising the second playbackdevice.
 6. The first playback device of claim 5, further comprisingprogram instructions stored on the at least one non-transitorycomputer-readable medium that are executable by the at least oneprocessor such that the first playback device is configured to: usingthe at least one audio amplifier, play back the audio content from theaudio stream in synchrony with the plurality of other playback devices.7. The first playback device of claim 1, wherein the programinstructions that are executable by the at least one processor such thatthe first playback device is configured to forward the at least somedata from the data stream to the second playback device comprisesprogram instructions that are executable by the at least one processorsuch that the first playback device is configured to: forward the atleast some data from the data stream to a plurality of playback devices.8. A method performed by a first playback device comprising a battery,the method comprising: receiving, using at least one communicationinterface of the first playback device, a data stream; while receivingthe data stream and a battery level of the battery is above a threshold,forwarding at least some data from the data stream to a second playbackdevice using the at least one communication interface; while forwardingthe at least some data from the data stream, detect that the batterylevel of the battery is below the threshold; and after detecting thatthe battery level of the battery is below the threshold, (i)transmitting at least one message comprising an indication that thefirst playback device will cease to forward the at least some data fromthe data stream and (ii) ceasing to forward the at least some data fromthe data stream to the second playback device.
 9. The method of claim 8,wherein the data stream comprises an audio stream, and whereinforwarding the at least some data from the data stream to the secondplayback device comprises: forwarding audio content from the audiostream to the second playback device.
 10. The method of claim 9, furthercomprising: playing back the audio content from the audio stream insynchrony with the second playback device.
 11. The method of claim 9,wherein forwarding the audio content from the audio stream to the secondplayback device comprises: forwarding the audio content from the audiostream to a plurality of other playback devices comprising the secondplayback device.
 12. The method of claim 11, further comprising: playingback the audio content from the audio stream in synchrony with theplurality of other playback devices.
 13. The method of claim 8, whereinforwarding the at least some data from the data stream to the secondplayback device comprises: forwarding the at least some data from thedata stream to a plurality of playback devices.
 14. A first playbackdevice comprising: a battery; at least one communication interfaceconfigured to facilitate communication over at least one data network;at least one audio amplifier; at least one processor; and at least onenon-transitory computer-readable medium; and program instructions storedon the at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium that areexecutable by the at least one processor such that the first playbackdevice is configured to: while the first playback device receives afirst audio stream, transmit a second audio stream that comprises audiocontent from the first audio stream to a second playback device usingthe at least one communication interface; play back, using the at leastone audio amplifier, the audio content in synchrony with the secondplayback device; and while the first playback device does not receivepower from at least one external source; detect that a battery level ofthe battery of the first playback device is below a threshold; and afterdetecting that the battery level of the battery is below the threshold,(i) transmit at least one message comprising an indication that thefirst playback device will cease transmission of the second audio streamand (ii) cease transmission of the second audio stream to the secondplayback device.
 15. The first playback device of claim 14, wherein theprogram instructions that are executable by the at least one processorsuch that the first playback device is configured to transmit the secondaudio stream comprises program instructions that are executable by theat least one processor such that the first playback device is configuredto: while the first playback device receives power from the at least oneexternal source, transmit the second audio stream to the second playbackdevice using the at least one communication interface.
 16. The firstplayback device of claim 14, wherein the program instructions that areexecutable by the at least one processor such that the first playbackdevice is configured to transmit the second audio stream comprisesprogram instructions that are executable by the at least one processorsuch that the first playback device is configured to: while the firstplayback device does not receive power from the at least one externalsource and the battery level is above the threshold, transmit the secondaudio stream to the second playback device using the at least onecommunication interface.
 17. The first playback device of claim 14,wherein the first audio stream is the same as the second audio stream.